Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Tim, for forwarding a link to this deal which includes two Grundig Mini receivers for $44.99 via Woot.
Note that at time of posting Woot is only offering this deal for 7 more hours or until sold out.
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Mike Bott, who noticed that the Grundig Executive Satellit is on sale at Frys.com for $127.99 shipped.
Great price! Thanks for sharing, Mike!
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Ivan, who shares the following:
In December, sales of this radio will begin. The seller promises to put the price of 60 US dollars. Radio of a level not lower than Tecsun PL-660 for such a small price is great! There is a video review on YouTube. Unfortunately in Russian. There is no more information on this radio on the Internet. I myself found out by accident.
Click here to view on YouTube.
Thank you for the tip, Ivan! I’m guessing this is yet another portable based on the Silicon Labs SL4735.
The display looks like that of the Digitech AR-1780 and the keypad configuration is nearly identical–the only visible difference being the shape of the SSB button which is rectangular on the AR01780.
The Digitech AR-1780 keypad.
The XHDATA D-808 Keypad.
The power buttons are also in different locations.
AliExpress has the D-808 in their catalog, but the price is listed at $2,000 per unit (!!!) with no shipping to the US. Perhaps the pricing formula changes if you place an order within Russia?
UPDATE: Ivan adds, “I talked to the seller of Xhdata D-808 on Ali about the crazy price claimed now. The seller replied that the price will be quite different and much more humane than what is now.”
Again, thanks for the tip, Ivan!
Post readers: If you have the XHDATA D-808, I’d certainly welcome a review. Please feel free to contact me about submitting one.
(International Radio Report press release via Sheldon Harvey)
NOTICE: 30th Anniversary edition of The International Radio Report on CKUT-FM 90.3 MHz in Montreal
Sunday, November 19, 2017 from 10:30 am to 11:30 AM Eastern (1530 to 1630 UTC)
The International Radio Report, is a radio program conceived by Sheldon Harvey and submitted to CKUT’s first station manager Ms. Susan Elrington as a proposal in the fall of 1987. CKUT obtained its FM broadcasting license in 1987 and began broadcasting regular programming, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, in November 1987.The program proposal was approved and the International Radio Report, a weekly 30-minute program about the medium of radio, first aired on Thursday afternoons from 2:30 to 3 PM, beginning in mid-November 1987 when CKUT first went on the air. The program eventually moved to Sunday mornings from 10:30 to 11:00 AM. It has aired every week for the past 30 years on CKUT.
The program, originally hosted and produced by Sheldon Harvey and William Westenhaver, initially dealt exclusively with the world of international radio broadcasting, or shortwave radio, featuring information on radio broadcasts from around the world that could be listened to on shortwave radio. Over the years the scope of the program evolved and expanded to also include information and developments in local and national radio broadcasting, campus/community radio, pirate and clandestine radio and, eventually, Internet and digital radio. The program also covers developments in radio equipment, radio technology, and more.
Throughout its 30 years on the air, the program has had a few other hosts and producers. Sheldon Harvey and William Westenhaver took a break for several years, but the program continued with hosts Janice Laws and Steve Karlock. Eventually Steve left and Sheldon returned to co-host with Janice. Then Janice left and was replaced by David Asselin. Today the show continues with co-hosts Sheldon Harvey and David Asselin.
Over the years numerous guests have appeared on the program, including personalities from local and international radio stations, members of various shortwave and amateur radio clubs and organizations, representatives of Industry Canada and the Canadian Radio Television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), and other radio related organizations.
The program has developed a dedicated local audience, as well as many listeners from around the world tuning in via CKUT’s webpage live-stream. There is also a very active Facebook group with over 365 members from around the world.
The International Radio Report will be celebrating its 30th anniversary broadcast on Sunday, November 19th with a special one-hour edition of the program from 10:30 to 11:30 am. Sheldon and David will have an array of special in-studio guests, plus some samplings of past historic broadcasts, including a clip from the very first edition in November 1987. We will also pay tribute to past hosts and guests and have a round-table discussion on the evolution of radio over the last 30 years and what the future holds for the medium.
We invite you to tune in to this special 1-hour edition of the International Radio Report, live from 10:30 to 11:30 AM, on Sunday, November 19, 2017 on CKUT-FM 90.3 in Montreal and online, live-streaming, on www.ckut.ca. The broadcast will then be available on the CKUT archives.
As reported recently on the SWLing Post that the Airspy HF+ would be available “really, really, really soon”, the rumor has become reality–this new SDR receiver is for sale on Airspy’s main sale site www.Itead.cc.
The direct link for purchase is: https://www.itead.cc/airspy-hf-plus.html. The price in US dollars is a very reasonable $199.00, considering the high performance evident by the few test units “in the wild” recently.
There was an initial $50-off coupon code available first come, first served this morning for the first 100 orders. These were snapped up quickly; I was fortunate to make it into that limited group and I saved $50 each off a couple of HF+ units. My intent is to pair them up for full coverage of the medium wave band–while recording I/Q WAV files)–using two receiver “instances” within Studio 1 or SDR-Console software. (The alias-free bandwidth of the HF+ is a modest 660 kHz, a trade-off this receiver makes to deliver high performance at a low price.) I expect a EXTIO DLL file to be available soon for use in EXTIO software like Studio 1 (or the EXTIO version of SDRuno which I also use).
I plan to be comparing the HF+ to my current Elad FDM-S2 SDR; based on specs and early user reports, it should be a tight race.
UPDATE: I’ve learned that the shipping timeframe for the HF+ is the beginning of December (approx. three weeks). There is also a U.S. distributor who is kindly offering a similar $50-off deal: https://v3.airspy.us/product/airspy-hfplus/
Simon Brown, author of the popular SDR-Console software versions, closely compares the Airspy HF+ ($199 USD) against a RFspace NetSDR ($1449 USD w/o options): http://www.sdr-radio.com/Radios/Airspy/AirspyHF
Who else is planning on an Airspy HF+ purchase? What are your monitoring interests you plan to use it for? Please comment below and share your thoughts with other SWLing Post readers!
Guy Atkins is a Sr. Graphic Designer for T-Mobile and lives near Seattle, Washington. He’s a regular contributor to the SWLing Post.
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Troy Riedel, who writes:
Wow, Amazon (this morning) dropped the price on the Eton Field BT to $97.49. Given Amazon’s “stock market-like” pricing, no telling how long this price will last.
Thanks, Troy! I do believe this is the lowest price I’ve seen on the Field BT, which I consider to be a fine radio–certainly an affordable alternative to the pricier Tecsun S-8800 (if SSB reception is of no concern). The last time Troy shared an Amazon deal with me, it disappeared before I could even post it. Their pricing algorithm is tricky. If you’ve been waiting to bit the bullet, now is likely the best time. Click here to read Troy’s comparison of the Field BT and the S-8800.
Click here to view the Field BT deal on Amazon.com (affiliate link!).
Last week, I posted a review of the Digitech AR-1780–a compact receiver that is only sold in Jaycar retail stores throughout Australia and New Zealand.
Since I live in the US, I purchased my AR-1780 via an Australian distributor on eBay.
Several SWLing Post readers discovered direct orders can be placed with Jaycar, thus taking advantage of Jaycar’s sales.
A couple weeks ago, Post reader, Paul, shared his correspondence with Jaycar where they implied an order could be placed via email directly with a Jaycar representative. I reached out to this representative for clarification because I felt uneasy about even suggesting that readers send credit card information over email. I asked if they had a secure order form. I never heard back from Jaycar and have been too busy to follow-up.
Turns out, SWLing Post contributor, Troy Riedel, just placed an order for the AR-1780 via Jaycar and shared the details–all it takes is a phone call. Troy writes:
I ordered the AR-1780 from Jaycar.
I contacted them through their web site, exchanged emails with a Customer Service Supervisor and she told me that they actually have a toll-free U.S. number that goes to their Australian call center (staffed during their business hours)! FYI, it’s:
1-800-784-0263
I got it for $134 AUD or $103.40 USD shipped!
Thanks for sharing, Troy! A great option for ordering Jaycar products in the US.
If any Post readers in Canada have also successfully placed an order through this toll free number, please comment!